Thinking of moving to Newburyport from the Boston area (Haverhill: transplants, real estate)

[Newburyport???]

My husband and I recently fell in love with a house in Newburyport and are seriously considering relocating there from the Boston area. We both work in downtown Boston and would most likely be using the commuter rail to get to and from work. We have really enjoyed our time in Boston. We have both lived in several parts of the city and currently reside in Davis Square, which we actually like quite a bit, so we are having a hard time with the decision. We have always thought that we would move outside the city to either Newburyport or Mablehead at some point, like in a few years when we are ready to start a family, but doing it now might be a little premature. On the other hand it seems to be a good time to get the house that we love in a beautiful place.

I wonder if anyone could weigh in on whether or not moving seems like it would be a good idea. Specifically, will commuting into Boston everyday be too long and tedious? Does Newburyport as a small city have enough to support our interests? We love having access to Boston, will we regret being away from it? Or will the charm of Newburyport offset that?

Thank you for your input!

[Valerie C]

Well, that's quite a change of pace going from Davis Square to Newburyport, no matter what part of town you are considering living in. Besides the "historic" Market Square area, Newburyport is a pretty quiet and laid back community for the most part, at least from Sept to May. The summer months now have all sorts of fests going on at the waterfront, and there is something for all ages. Some great neighborhoods, and now is certainly a better time to buy than 3 years ago, but remember that your choices for "regular" shopping will be the stores up along Rte 113. You do have easy access to Danvers, etc or to tax-free shopping in Seabrook, via Rte 95/1.

Newburyport just doesn't have the vibe, and the main problem w/ the commuter rail line is of course all the stops, but from what I understand the NBPT line is much better than the Haverhill line. Best of luck with your decision

[Newburyport???]

Thanks for your thoughts! It's great to get your perspective. We would potentially be living within walking distance to the downtown area which I am hoping will provide us with the same kind of pedestrian experience we have in Davis; walking to restaurants, bars and shops. Also the house appears to be a 15 minute or so bike ride from Plum Island, which seems like a very attractive amenity. I just wonder if anyone else has made a similar move and how it worked for them.

Thanks again!

[Valerie C]

If you like the blues, be sure to check out The Grog downstairs on Sunday nights

[robr]

I live a 5 minute walk from downtown Newburyport with my wife and two toddlers. It's certainly a great town, especially for families with young kids, but that doesn't sound like you at the moment. Downtown is nice, nice park, lots going on in the summer, great bars....

I did the commute to the financial district for 2 years before starting my own company. It SUCKS. I tried driving, then the train, then the bus, then eventually settled on a vanpool. The only way I could spend a reasonable amount of time commuting was if I left at 5:30am and came back around 3pm. During normal business hours, you're going to spend 3 hours of your day if you drive. Rail is a bit better in that regard most of the time. You'll be spending $200-$300/month on the commute... if not more. Vanpool was the cheapest of all of them and I think that was around $180 almost 3 years ago when gas was far cheaper.

I am not particularly picky about where I live, but my wife WILL NOT LEAVE this town. I can't really afford to be here, but she feels so strongly about it, I'm still here . If you ever do have kids, the NBPT mother's club is extremely large and always have events planned. The school system here sort of sucks though. We lived on Plum Island for a year as well, I'm glad we tried it out first because it sounded like a great place to live until we actually did it. Since you didn't ask about living there, I won't explain. It's definitely a nice place to visit though. I frequently jog down to the beach and back.

[Valerie C]

robr, your perspective as somebody who lives in town is perfect for the OP. I cannot imagine spending 3 hours a day driving the same route to work (but I guess on a busy day I can easily spend 3 hours driving from house to house...)

Plum Island has always had its own thing going on, and there is no mistaking being from Newburyport or being from Plum Island, and that's how everybody liked it. I have noticed over the last few years quite a number of small seasonal cottages making way for the inevitable BIG BEACH HOUSE which seem totally out of character for the island. I've never lived there full time, but know quite a few people who've lived there for years. They are resisting the change that seems imminent ie: Plum Island being "discovered" and changed into some sort of artist community or getaway resort. It is SO very much not that right now. I for one hope that it keeps it's old flavor. While I don't think I'd want to live there, it's still a great place to visit. There's not many places like that that haven't been taken over by developers & big money looking for a place to spend it. Just MHO of course

[Newburyport???]

Hmmm very interesting stuff. Thanks for your comments.

Robr, why does the school system sort of suck? This isn't a concern for us yet but might be in the future.

and Valerie C, speaking of big developers and their money, do you, by any chance, know what the projected plans from Steve Karp might be? I wonder if those also extend to Plum Island. I have been wondering how people in the area are reacting to his development plans and what they consist of, I personally have only a foggy understanding of the whole situation.

[Valerie C]

It's my opinion that the Newburyport that I grew up in will be long gone, perhaps sooner rather than later. It's well on it's way to becoming a playground for the elite, and moreso once Lord Karp's plans for Waterfront West are complete. The last I heard is that the entire waterfront area from Michael's Harborside to just past the Black Cow is going to be a resort/hotel/condos, etc. A parking deck of some sort across the way, maybe near the Fitness Factory? So much for a bait store, etc that is there now. I imagine that the local real estate brokerages in town are drooling and sending all their proposals to Karp & Company to get their name on the signs... Sorry if I sound jaded and I know change is inevitable, but Newburyport has been part of my life for many years, and not everybody is happy with the changes over the last several years...

At this time, Plum Island doesn't seem to be in the plans, but of course there will be other lesser developers looking to build up the island to it's "best and highest use". *sigh* such is life...

[robr]

If you want to keep up on the goings on in NBPT, as well as the whole Karp situation, I'd recommend this blog:

http://marybakerart.com/newburyport/

As far as schools, they are simply underfunded. Lat year they closed down one small elementary school because of lack of $$$, they tried to pass an override to get more school $$$ via taxes from us, but it was shot down. I'm going to be scrambling to try to figure out how I can afford to send my 3 year old to Montessori in September... of course if I figure that out, it will be even worse next year when my daughter is 3. I happened to be talking to an elementary school teacher a couple of weeks ago I met when my wife sent me to pick something up from Freecycle. She saw my son in the car and volunteered that if he was going to school soon, if I have the means I should consider alternatives to public school. That was kind of scary to me. I don't really have the means but I'm trying to find it . I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to afford to stay here to be honest. My wife has been here almost 15 years and doesn't want to leave, but I'm surrounded by 1-2m+ homes (that were $400-500K not so long ago) and I feel like I'm clinging to a piece of driftwood. If it weren't for my wife's stubbornness, we'd probably be gone by now for the sake of my kids. On the other hand, if you are financially well off, you'll do fine here.

[SwiftCreek]

This is good dialog! I've also been looking in the NBPT area. I accepted a position in Boston and my family still lives in NC. We're pretty nervous about coming back and eduring winter (we're Canadian) - which was the reason for leaving. I like the charm and activities in NBPT. I was concerned about the schools BUT compared to the rest of the country, NBPT schools are very good. The schools will also get needed funding as more families move to town. The new Superintendent also appears to be the right person for change. Finally, I attended a small podunk town public school system in Canada with working class parents and somehow made it through grad school at MIT. If your kids are smart, they'll be fine. People are sometimes too hung up on "best schools".

I completely concur with Valerie and Robr's sentiments. The town is getting more expensive - due to it's desirability. You're also seeing that in the housing market where prices haven't dropped off that much - a good thing. I've also heard that the developers that did Guirardelli in San Francisco are putting some deal together to redevelop Salisbury beach. The project is aptly named "World Class Salisbury Beach". This came from a friend who owns real estate near the beach. These things combined tell me that NBPT (and the Newbury's) are very desirable places going forward.

I've tried the commute a few times. Robr is right. I can see it getting old. But I'm in consulting and can work from home some days. You'd have to evaluate that. I have also tried commuting from Hingham, Concord, Ashland, and Andover numerous times. Best driving commutes are: Ashland, Andover, Newburyport, Concord, Hingham.

Finally, If my wife decides that she does want to move here (she's having second thoughts) - I will probably buy in NBPT or Newbury. There seems to be a TON of activities in the area and it's great location is convenient to many destinations such as Ipswich, Crane Beach, Gloucester, Salem, Rockport, Portsmouth, Kennebunkport - to name a few. Maudslay State Park is also a very nice place to take a walk. There are also lots of "transplants" to NBPT area - which means making friends will be easier than allot of other Mass towns. People in NBPT area are quite progressive and I'm always suprised at the things I find each time I visit. Last weekend I discovered 2 high-end cheese/wine import shops!